Library / English Dictionary

WHILE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A period of indeterminate length (usually short) marked by some action or condition

Example:

a patch of bad weather

Synonyms:

patch; piece; spell; while

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Hypernyms ("while" is a kind of...):

time (an indefinite period (usually marked by specific attributes or activities))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "while"):

cold snap; cold spell (a spell of cold weather)

hot spell (a spell of hot weather)

snap (a spell of cold weather)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Present simple (first person singular and plural, second person singular and plural, third person plural) of the verb while

Credits

 Context examples: 

While morphologically distinct, both types have similar clinical presentation and prognosis.

(Nasopharyngeal Nonkeratinizing Carcinoma, NCI Thesaurus)

Is not she a sister's child? and could I bear to see her want while I had a bit of bread to give her?

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

While it has no known role in oncogenesis, MIR107 plays a role in the development of Alzheimer's disease.

(MIR107 Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

Auditory Verbal Learning Test Version A - The number of intrusions while recalling List B.

(ADNI AVLT - List B Intrusions, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

While it has no known role in oncogenesis, MIR148A plays a role in the development of asthma.

(MIR148A Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

While it has no known role in oncogenesis, MIR148B plays a role in the development of asthma.

(MIR148B Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

While it has no known role in oncogenesis, MIR659 plays a role in the development of frontotemporal dementia.

(MIR659 Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

While it has no known role in oncogenesis, MIR152 plays a role in the development of asthma.

(MIR152 Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

We haven't been here a great while, you know, but we have got acquainted with all our neighbors but you.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

And while his eyes were still closed, he had felt, tasted, and smelled.

(White Fang, by Jack London)